Tesla did not say whether he believed Khatilov coordinated with others. However, it warned that it did not “expose” all of Khatilov’s actions and that he might still share Tesla’s files. The staff had to work remotely due to the pandemic, making it difficult to verify that the files had been deleted.
The carmaker has been very protective of its technology in the past, suing Rivian and Zoox for allegedly hiring recruits who brought Tesla secrets with them. It is, moreover, the charge of individuals like Martin Tripp, who called Elon Musk a ‘saboteur’. Khatilov’s case, if true, could probably only increase Tesla’s concerns about trade secrets theft. If people just register to steal automation tools, Tesla might feel justified in jealously protecting its key EV and self-driving technology.